Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Thursday that they had confidence in far-sightedness of the Turkish and Greek peoples and the friendship between Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Greek counterpart George Papandreou in cases of provocations or wrong guidance.
Davutoglu visited historic sites in Greek city of Kavala in Western Thrace on Thursday as part of his official trip to Greece.
Speaking to Turkish reporters about his visit to Greece, Davutoglu said that his three day trip to Greece was very fruitful from all perspectives.
We want to turn the whole Aegean, Mediterranean and the Balkans into basins of friendship, Davutoglu stressed.
I am thankful to the Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou and Foreign Minister Dimitrios Droutsas for the hospitality displayed. Their hospitality will remain in our minds as symbols of friendship. Surely, there will be certain circles who would want to aggravate relations between the two countries. We have confidence in far-sightedness of the Turkish and Greek peoples and the friendship between Erdogan and Papandreou against any provocations. We will live together with the Greeks and our friendship will be a role model to other countries, Davutoglu underlined.
In response to a question from a Greek journalist on the religious freedoms of the Turks living in Western Thrace, Davutoglu said that the issue was an internal one of Greece.
"The issue of religious freedoms also has to do with international human rights. We can discuss such matters by being respectful to our internal matters," Davutoglu also said.